My second innings

My second innings in Detroit

                      July 14 happened to be an eventful day with Pearl’s wedding day coinciding with her son’s birthday. 2016 assumed more significance because Shaun celebrates his first birthday. It was an occasion to be remembered for long. Grandparents, granduncles, aunts, cousins, friends and neighbours made a beeline to 1989 Shepherd’s Drive with gifts, hugs and promises. The house like a big balloon expanded itself to accommodate everyone with almost some sort of private space to everyone. Unending chats went along with unceasing cookery. All sorts of Indian cuisine challenged the American snacks. Everyone contributed their own advice to everyone to make the dish tastier. No guests were special. None but babies were pampered and persuaded to help themselves with more. It required some effort and skill to keep the conversations going especially among men. To this horde of kith and kin,  a new man joined to make the occasion very official. In spite of his efforts to sound it casual,  his presence in black with a white round collar made all a little uneasy. Moreover his request for emulating the church choir made some of us jerky with unknown verse with familiar tunes. However, the mass at home got going with a high tech assembly of handsets and iPods assisting the congregation to maintain the required solemnity. Whatsoever you do, a home will hardly be a church notwithstanding the compulsive paraphernalia.